Little Duck Blue Feather - if anyone can find any info or has a copy plz let me know!

[Brunettepixie]

Hi! I've been desperately trying to find this for years. We had a VHS recording of it taped from TB which has been lost somewhere and may not have even been labelled. It definitely wasn't Disney but I can't remember if it was British or American. It must have been early/mid 90's but again I could be wrong. I was born in 1993 and was quite young when I used to watch it but I do remember watching it for some years..I'm 95% sure it was just a one-off rather than a series, an as it was a tape recording it would've only been on one of 4 channels, I'm thinking BBC.

It had a very sad tone to it, the duck was possibly called Blue Feather? Or may have been a duck with a blue feather. I can't remember if she talked or not. It may have been a silent film? But something sad happened at the end, either she died or her eggs were stolen (possibly by a fox but not 100% sure!) when I've Googled it I can only find "Little Bear and Blue feather" which is a cartoon about bears and a series called Hetty Feather - it's neither of those! And it's definitely not Will Cwak Cwak (although that was a classic!) :-) Please help if you can!

[staffslad]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

I think it could have been called Little Duck Blue Feather if it is the one I remember, though extremely vaguely, and it may well have been Chinese in origin, but I can find nothing about it online.

[Brunettepixie]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

I think it could have been called Little Duck Blue Feather if it is the one I remember, though extremely vaguely, and it may well have been Chinese in origin, but I can find nothing about it online.

Hi! Omg you're amazing, I think you've found it! I typed that in and it came up with a page which records everything shown on the BBC! Can't believe someone else remembers this! Can you remember anything about it? I remember it really affecting me for some reason! Ah it makes sense if it was Chinese in origin as Chinese animations often seem to have quite a sad, realistic plot. I think as a child maybe it shocked me as it probably wasn't a happy ending like all the Disney movies haha... its such a shame there's nothing about it online! Nothing about it anywhere, nothing on IMDb. I even translated the title into Chinese and searched for that on YouTube - nothing! I must try and track down that old videotape.... I'm becoming obsessed!

[staffslad]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

I'm sorry but I can remember very little about it. The title was unusual so perhaps stuck in my memory. I can't even recall why I think it was Chinese in origin unless it was stated by the station announcer, and it did have that Chinese animation style about it as you say. I think it was a fairly short film and it is frustrating that there is hardly any mention about it online.

[culnara]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

well done staffslad

[culnara]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

must be something on the net somewhere

[Brunettepixie]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

I'm sorry but I can remember very little about it. The title was unusual so perhaps stuck in my memory. I can't even recall why I think it was Chinese in origin unless it was stated by the station announcer, and it did have that Chinese animation style about it as you say. I think it was a fairly short film and it is frustrating that there is hardly any mention about it online.

thanks anyway, you confirmed the title which is a big step! I'm not sure why it means so much to me but I'd love to watch it again. It's funny you mentioned about the Chinese animation though as I found one other mention on another forum called the answer bank where people were discussing what cartoons had really upset them, and a user had commented this:
"Bambi, then 'The Ice Queen' (you have to be a certain age), Lion King, a random Chinese 5-min animation called 'Little Duck Blue Feather', Watership Down, Animal Farm."

So a handful of people out there do remember this and supports your Chinese theory! I searched the BBC genome sight and found entries where it was shown in 1992, 1993, 1993 and 1995 but it says nothing else about it! And all BFI says is synopsis: Film. Nothing about writer or director. How strange! It really must've been a tiny little film.

[Brunettepixie]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

must be something on the net somewhere

I've trawled through it many times and found nothing so far! I wonder if I contacted the BBC genome (radio times archive site) and see if they could shed any light? I wonder if they would still have a copy of it?

[culnara]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

try Kodi

[PrincessBoy]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

thanks anyway, you confirmed the title which is a big step! I'm not sure why it means so much to me but I'd love to watch it again. It's funny you mentioned about the Chinese animation though as I found one other mention on another forum called the answer bank where people were discussing what cartoons had really upset them, and a user had commented this:
"Bambi, then 'The Ice Queen' (you have to be a certain age), Lion King, a random Chinese 5-min animation called 'Little Duck Blue Feather', Watership Down, Animal Farm."

So a handful of people out there do remember this and supports your Chinese theory! I searched the BBC genome sight and found entries where it was shown in 1992, 1993, 1993 and 1995 but it says nothing else about it! And all BFI says is synopsis: Film. Nothing about writer or director. How strange! It really must've been a tiny little film.

I remember the short film Little Duck Blue Feather, not massively well but as I remember the essence of the film is as follows:

A duck acquires a nest, formerly belonging to a friend of hers, in a low hedge, but a hedgehog eats all the eggs one day when she goes looking for food. The duck spots the hedgehog and kills him.

She then finds another low tree, and lays eggs in a nest there, but in a rather eerie a scene, one night after dark a fox is shown lurking around, and when the duck leaves the nest the next day and comes back with food, the eggs are broken, and the fox is shown nearby in his hole having eaten them.

She then makes a nest on an old felled tree near the river knowing that the fox will not be able to reach this nest. However, a beaver removes the eggs as they were hindering his progress in building a lodge.

Realising that she is running out of before nesting season is over, and seeing a nest high up in a very tree that was abandoned by a sparrow hawk who has not been seen for over a week, the duck decides to take a risk and - knowing that this nest will be out of the beaver's way and safe from danger from the fox - she places her eggs there in the hope that they will hatch... >>>

[PrincessBoy]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

<<< But she now faces a different threat - aerial attacks from other birds. With the eggs about to hatch, a large family of crows decide to try and take the tree, and launch an attack. The duck realises she is outnumbered, and prepares to admit defeat and reluctantly abandon the nest, and her eggs, to the crows. However, the tree waves its branches forcefully, and the crows, startled, abandon their attack and leave.

The following day, cracks appear in the eggs, but before the ducklings can emerge, the sparrow hawk who had had the nest before the duck returns. The sparrow hawk is angry that the duck has taken over her nest, and begins an aerial attack on the nest. The duck attempts to fend off the sparrow hawk, but realises that the sparrow hawk is too strong. But once again, the tree comes to her rescue, forcefully waving its branches, frightening off the sparrow hawk, who flies away.

The following morning, the eggs hatch, and at last the duck is mother to six ducklings. Their happiness is briefly threatened by the returning beaver, who starts trying to fell the tree to use for his lodge, but the duck flies down, she pecks him, and he goes away. The ducks are victorious and the film ends on a happy note.

Just to say as well, that whilst the BBC showed the film in 1992, 1993 and 1995 according to the Genome site, my dad recorded it for me and my sister on VHS, but it was long before 1992, as I was 12 in 1992 but I distinctly remember watching this when I was about 6 and we had in on VHS for years...

I last remember seeing it in circa 2004 (by which time I was about 24), when going through a load of old VHS tapes in my dad's loft, and interestingly the film had the classic LWT "river" ident just before it began, and also a LWT logo at the end. This ident would suggest two things:

1.) That the film was actually originally shown on ITV in the UK, and the three BBC showings were all repeats;

2.) The "river" ident featuring the LWT name was used on ITV between 1978 (when London Weekend changed its name to LWT) and 1986 (when the "river" ident was dropped and replaced with the "Genesis" LWT ident)... which means the film was originally broadcast sometime between those two years

[Brunettepixie]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

Oh my goodness Princessboy, you’re absolutely amazing! Thank you so much! God no wonder it made me so sad! It sounds traumatising! �� It definitely must’ve stuck amongst the more light and fluffy animations that I would’ve been watching at the time. If you ever find that old VHS let me know! Mine may be up in the loft too gathering dust so one day maybe I could trawl through them and find it but we’ve literally got hundreds. How fascinating though, thanks again! It’s bugged me for years haha. Poor duck! Poor hedgehog too that she killed! Seems quite dark haha.

[Twocky61]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

I vaguely remember it.

Thanks for the info

[Brunettepixie]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

If anyone happens to have a copy somehow, I'd love to see it again! What stuck with me is the feeling of sadness it gave me and it's the first time as a child I'd felt that feeling, probably why it stuck with me. I'd love to watch it again as an adult. If I ever find it (unlikely) I'll try and get it on YouTube!

[Brunettepixie]

Re: Animated sad, short film about a duck, possibly BBC

I vaguely remember it.

Thanks for the info

Ah wow! I really thought I was the only one! What did you think? Do you remember what channel you saw it on?